256 AVES— ORDER SPHENISCIFORMES. 



returned and settled down again upon their eggs. Not many weeks had 

 passed before a change was effected in their conduct. The young were 

 hatched, and now the mothers anxiously endeavoured to persuade them to 

 follow the example of their fathers, and run away to sea. But the nestlings 

 preferred to stay in their nests ; they did not mind if the stranger did stroke 

 them, although their anxious mothers ran at him with open mouths whenever 

 he dared to do so. Only a few of the older chicks could be prevailed upon 

 to stir, and they, after waddling a few yards, became satisfied with their 

 performance, and turned to go home again. The mothers, who had straggled 

 to a greater distance, began to return too. It was now that the more tardy 

 youngsters began to experience the ills of life. Every penguin that had 

 reached its place before them aimed blows at them as they passed by towards 

 their own abodes. One of the little birds certainly did seem to deserve 

 correction. It saw its neighbour's nest empty, and sat down in it. The old 

 female Johnnie, the rightful occupier, presently returned in company with 

 her own chick, to whom, having put her head well into his mouth, she began 

 to administer refreshment after his run. Seeing them so pleasantly engaged, 

 the small vagrant, thoughtlessly presuming upon her generosity, went nearer 

 and presented himself to be fed also, as if he had a right to her attention 

 and care. She looked at him while he stood gaping before her with drooping 

 wings, unable for the moment to credit what she saw. But suddenly the 

 truth flashed upon her, and, provoked by his consummate audacity, she gave 

 vent to her indignation, pecked his tongue as hard as she could, chased him 

 out of the nest, darting blows at his back, and croaked ominously after him 

 as he fled precipitately beyond the range of her beak, leaving trophies of 

 down upon the scene of his unfortunate adventure. The whole of this 

 community of penguins was subsequently boiled down into 'hare soup' for 

 the officers of H.M.S. Volage, and very nice they found it. The nests were 

 composed of dried leaf-stalks and seed-stems of pringlea, together with such 

 other suitable material as happened to be at hand. There were two eggs in 

 every nest, and one of them was invariably larger than the other. Most 

 likely the birds hatched from the larger eggs are of the opposite sex to those 

 which are produced from the smaller. Whether the big or the little egg is 

 the first to be laid was not ascertained. 



" As is the case with many other kinds of birds, Johnnies are very regular 



in their habits. Every afternoon at nearly the same time they repair to the 



shore when they have done fishing, landing in small parties at their 



accustomed places at the heads of shallow inlets. On issuing from the 



water they dispose themselves to rest, seldom proceeding beyond the verge 



of the shore. Those which are inclined to sleep put their heads behind their 



flippers ; the others stand amongst them with their neck shortened so as to 



bring the head down close to the body, with the beak slanting upwards and 



forwards, somewhat in the manner of a very young thrush during repose. 



Their eyes present a rather tearful appearance, and resemble bits of dull 



black glass set in their heads, — perhaps the nictitating membrane may be 



kept drawn over them. At frequent intervals a kind of watery fluid is 



ejected from their mouth by a shake of the head." 



The Petrels.^ The petrels are also often called the Tubinarcs, on account 



Oraer Pro- of their tubular nostrils. They are generally associated with 



cellariiformes. the gulls, but there is really little in common between the 



two groups; beyond the fact that they are both marine orders 



of birds. The petrels dift'er from the gulls in many important anatomical 



